Well I hear that train a comin'It's rollin' around the bendI ain't seen the sunshineSince I don't know whenWell I'm stuck in Folsom PrisonAnd time keeps draggin' onThat train keeps rollin'On down to San Antone

When I was just a babyMy mama told me, "son,Always be a good boyDon't you ever play with guns"But I shot a man in RenoJust to watch him dieWhen I hear that lonesome whistleI hang my head and cry

Well I bet there's rich folks eatingIn a fancy dinin' carI bet they're taking mushroomsAnd smokin' big cigarsWell I know I had it comin'I know I can't be freeThose people keep movin'And that's what tortures me

If they free me from this prisonIf that railroad train was mineYou bet I'd move it onA little farther down the lineYeah, far from Folsom PrisonThat's where I want to beWell those people keep movin'Goddammit, that's what tortures me

If they'd free me from this prisonIf that railroad train was mineYou bet I'd move it onA little farther down the lineYeah, far from Folsom PrisonThat's where I want to beWell those people keep movin'Goddammit that's what tortures me